HOUMA - A 2-year-old boy found dead in a trash can Tuesday was killed by severe blunt force trauma to the head, investigators say. The child's mother and her boyfriend are in custody for his murder.

Tuesday, State Police issued a missing child alert for 2-year-old Ezekiel Harry who was last seen around noon at a walking track near Main Street and Mahler Street, close to Bayou Terrebonne and the Intracostal.

WWL-TV reported Ezekiel's body was found that day in a trash can on Daspit Street, nearly two miles away from where he was reported missing. Friday, investigators told the news outlet they determined his cause of death was severe blunt force trauma to the head.

Ezekiel's mother, 28-year-old Maya Jones, and her live-in boyfriend, 37-year-old Jermaine Robinson, were arrested by Houma police officers Tuesday afternoon.

Police said Jones gave officers false information, initially telling officers she was walking with Ezekiel and her other three children when a truck passed by and abducted the child. The search went on for hours, involving helicopters and boats along the bayou before officers suspected foul play.

“This case has rocked our community,” District Attorney Joseph Waitz said. "[This is] absolutely, potentially a death penalty case.”